Help with buying a recorder in 2013...

[Rata-tat-tat]

Hey all... my Nephew called me last night and is wanting to get into recording demo's... He plays guitar... He want's to make a demo for a band he is in. Of course money is an issue with him (He's 17)... So I know the MBR was the hot ticket around here for years and I believe the BR 80 is around $350.00 US is there something else that you guys would recommend... Behringer/ Zoom... I don't have much experience with these other recorders and really haven 't been looking. Thought I would hit the board up to see what you guys think about the stuff that's currently out there.

[64Guitars]

Behringer doesn't make recorders. The only choices for multitrack recorders are Boss, TASCAM, and Zoom. For under $300, here's what's currently available:

                  Musician's                      Pitbull
                    Friend         Sweetwater      Audio
Boss BR-80          249.99            249.00
TASCAM DP-004        99.99            149.99
TASCAM DP-006          ?                 ?
TASCAM DP-008       149.99            249.99
TASCAM DP-008EX        ?                 ?         299.00
Zoom R8             299.00            299.99


The BR-80 and Zoom R8 are best for features. But the TASCAMs are probably the easiest to use because of all the dedicated controls. And you can get a DP-004 for $99. The trouble with the TASCAMs is that they lack v-tracks and a drum machine.

I'd recommend the BR-80. Although, the Zoom R8 has a few points in its favour too.

[Rata-tat-tat]

Thanks 64... I miss quoted the BR 80... I took a look at Musicians Friend... so yes $249.99 seems to be the going rate in the states... I'm sure I could find a better deal... I saw one used one for $212.00... which is a heck of a deal. I assume that BOSS has still got the market corner'd around this forum... rightfully so... it's a helluva piece of gear.

[dasilvasings]

You forgot the Korg SOS. I think it is in the same price range of the BR80.

Check out ebay - with a bit of luck you can get a bargain with the former BR 864/ 900/ 600 and mbr.

[SE]

I,ve got both boss recorders and in my opinion the MBR  is the ticket, compared to the mr80, the mr80 is full of stuff you don,t need. In my opinion which mines very little, if you want to record some tracks the mbr  is thing you want, but if you want to practice along with backng tracks ,thats the one you need.

[64Guitars]

You forgot the Korg SOS. I think it is in the same price range of the BR80.

The SOS is discontinued. Korg no longer makes a multitrack recorder. Neither does Fostex. All that's left is Boss, TASCAM and Zoom.

[kenny mac]

Get on to eBay and get a roland vs,they are there in the USA all the time I own two vs 840,s and got the second one from eBay with a flight case for £50 (I kid you not).

[Rata-tat-tat]

Hey Kenny that's a heck of a deal... this unit looks and performs almost identically to the Tascam DP02 which I paid about $350.00 US for a couple of years ago. When I first started recording I was a fan of sliders... however over the years I think my view has changed... Especially because I primarily used it to record drums. It never failed... once I had dialed everything in... someone... "Including myself" ...would come along and mess with the dials. Then it's start from scratch time... Also I noticed this only has a metronome vs a full on drum kit... Not that the BR kits are greatest, but sometimes it's nice to have something other than a click to lay a funky rhythm or notes with accents outside of the standard 4/4 progression... These are just my thoughts not meant to minimalize in any way shape or form... Pro's/ Con's if you will. I'm still leaning toward the MBR...  Thanks for your input... this stuff makes good discussion. Which I'm sure has already been addressed several times, but it's always nice to get a fresh perspective on current gear and what's out there.

One thing I'm curious about Kenny is the Zip drives... how much are they and what is the max size the 840 will handle???

[kenny mac]

Yoh dude, this is by no means an up to date format but the are so many ways to transfer things these days,All my stuff you hear on this site is recorded on this machine,I bought a br600 but have not fully utilised it yet and have only used it as an interface for bass etc ( my fault as I'm used to the vs),I'm only thinking about cash for the young guy and this will hold up with the rest,the quality is great ,again listen to some of the stuff,and it has ez routin for easy use,if you fish for long enough on the net I.e eBay a bargain will come up,also 64 put me on to an upgrade you can do changing it from zip to sd card,I bought it and now Ive bought the other one Im going to try that out..
Again ,eBay for zips,I got ten for about £20 transfer the song and you can use them as many times as you like.
Hope this helps.       Kenny.  Ps it also built in effects for guitar.

[Hook]

Hey RTT, as you know I've dabbled with the DP oo4, the zoom pso2, mbr & my br900. It really matters on what and how he wants to record. You said band, are they tracking or trying for a live sound? Drums? You can get a dp oo8 at amazon used now for under $150, that's a good machine with reverb, easy to use, good built in mics, 2 track simultaneous recording. Not sure how acoustic drums would come out with only 2 mics? Toss in audacity and hydrogen and he can do anything on his own. If he's looking for recording by himself, start to finish on one machine, the br80 or the mbr are the way to go, best bang for your buck. I do think the zoom recorders look very interesting and I might upgrade to the R24, but the R16 has 8 track simultaneous recording so would be the best choice and most affordable choice for a band or lots of recording drums. Plus you can slave them if you ever get 2 for 24 track simultaneous recording!!!. Seems to be a decent start to finish recorder, but doesn't seem to have V-tracks which i find odd since my ps02 had them. Both the tascam's and the zooms use sd cards up to 32G which is a super plus, I wouldn't screw around with old storage formats, those of us with the br's are out of luck with the compact flash crap.
Fun stuff...Good Luck!
Kenny's idea also has merit and I might get myself one of those too